Hero
by Swaggiest Purple
Summary: The day had started out like any other, so why was this happening? How did those people know that they were the world’s nations? Did someone tell them? How they break in? And why did Arthur rescue him before anyone, including himself? USxUK
1. Chapter 1

When America flew over the Atlantic to make it to the next World Meeting with his brother Canada, he was bored, and, knowing that all the nations would never agree with each other, didn't want to waste his time with it. But no matter what he thought, he had to go, with a smile on his face and a cheerful personality. And it was all worth it to bother England. At least, then, he wouldn't be bored during the Meeting.

Alfred glanced over at Matthew for a second; almost forgetting he was even there. The nearly invisible country was sleeping on his shoulder peacefully, having abandoned the idea of taking the window seat from Alfred since the taller nation first rejected the notion.

Boredom made Alfred a very devious country. As Matthew was sleeping he blew spitballs in his hair and stuffed pieces of napkin up his nose, courtesy of the lunch they were served a little while before. When he ran out of more creative ideas and ignored the looks he got from the other passengers, Alfred too finally fell asleep. He got up again when they reached the airport because Canada was too soft-voiced and unnoticeable, even when he was jabbing and prodding at America furiously after he woke up to an unpleasant – and disgusting – surprise.

He made Matthew carry all the luggage because, Alfred proclaimed, during the trip he was officially his sidekick, and sidekicks always did things heroes didn't bother with. Carrying the luggage to their hotel rooms was one of them. Matthew sometimes wondered why he even put up with his annoying brother.

By the time they finally got to the Meeting, they were both very late. But most of the nations didn't even notice that Canada was there, so they just rolled their eyes at America as he noisily sat down, the last one to do so.

"Late, as always, America. I guess punctuality doesn't mean much for such a stupid, bloody git, after all," England commented haughtily, arms crossed over his chest.

"Hey! I had to fly over an ocean!" Alfred shot back.

"I had a long flight as well, aru," China piped up. "And I was early, aru yo!"

Embarrassed, Alfred sunk back into his chair. Maybe he shouldn't have stopped at McDonald's to buy a few – okay, maybe a lot – of hamburgers. Once again, he preferred his own country's fast food over Europe's. Alfred watched Arthur's face turn from a conceited smile into a disgusted frown as he pulled out a still-warm Big Mac from his suit jacket.

Germany started the Meeting after shaking his head disapprovingly at the tardiness, banter, and fast food. It proceeded as usual with surprisingly minimal fighting between America, England, and the other nations.

Alfred was finishing up his last hamburger just as the Meeting was ending. Arthur looked like he couldn't wait to get out of there, especially since he had been watching America's eating habits and it appeared that he was about to vomit.

Still, the atmosphere was very cheery. So every single nation was caught completely off-guard when all the doors banged open at once, and men in black suits came charging in with large guns.

"What the bloody hell is going on?" England reacted first. Some of the other countries were starting to panic, but the more militant ones remained silent, sensing the danger.

One man who appeared to be leading the black-clad army answered him, "We know who you all are. Remain seated and stay calm, nations of the world."

At these words, nearly everyone performed the opposite. The next few minutes were hell. The countries were clamoring over each other and trying to find a way out. The soldiers rushed toward the center of the table and grabbed at any nation they could. There was no escape; only chaos.

America did not know what to do. He, unlike the others, remained seated, but only out of shock. England grabbed his shoulder and made him stand.

"Come on!" he told him over the shouts. "Follow me!" Arthur almost had to drag him to the nearest window, sneaking away from the chaos in the center of the room. "I thought you were a hero. Shouldn't you know what to do?" he smiled faintly. Alfred was still wordless from astonishment.

Bracing himself for severe pain, England smashed the window open with a strong thrust from his elbow. Reeling from the agony, he forced America through the broken glass and watched him tumble through the sill. Adrenaline and desperate strength helped him accomplish his goal. But now all his resolve was drained.

As Alfred was falling through the air, his shocked face and frozen blue eyes stayed locked on Arthur's distant, emerald orbs. Merely a few seconds later, a gun struck the island nation behind the head and knocked him out. Before England vanished from America's view, he saw that blood was gushing down his blonde hair and a soldier held his limp form in his arms.

Alfred landed in one of the huge bushes surrounding the tall building. He fell on his back but was mostly alright because nations didn't die from mortal wounds. However, he did have bad bruises and his clothes and skin were cut and bleeding from the broken glass.

At first, Alfred could barely get up because his whole body was aching from the fall. His head was facing skyward, but he couldn't see the window anymore because of the angle he was in. The young nation's eyes were wet and he realized he didn't _want_ to see what else was happening in that room.

"Iggy…" Alfred whispered. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply for a couple of moments. The day had started out like any other, so why was this happening? Questions were pulsing in his head. How did those people know that they were the world's nations? Did someone tell them? How they break in? And why did Arthur rescue him before anyone, including himself?

--

**A/N:** This is my first Hetalia fanfiction! ^_^ Please review and tell me if you like it - I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! I also hope you don't get confused from me switching between the country name and the human name.


	2. Chapter 2

America opened his eyes again a short while later, determined that England's sacrifice wouldn't be for nothing. He slid down and got under the bushes, waiting for the clamp of army men's boots to come close. When he didn't hear anything, he put his cheek against the ground and peered out at the space between the leaves and the grass. He could only see a few black vans, but it was likely that more circled all the way around the tall building.

Alfred was stumped. What should he do? He readjusted Texas on his face and looked closer at a van that had its back doors wide open.

"They're empty!" the young nation whispered, realization lighting upon his face. All of the soldiers had gone inside. While Alfred knew he would be abandoning his fellow nations, he comforted himself with the thought that he would find help and rescue all of them later, especially Iggy.

"I can finally be a hero! No one will make fun of me ever again," America smiled, mostly back to his old self.

Before leaving the safety of the bushes, Alfred made sure that no one was around. He prayed that all of the vehicles really _were_ empty. Quickly, he darted out onto the parking lot and passed the vans. His hunch had been right. America looked back at the building just once to make sure no one was coming out. He could see the broken window from his new vantage point, but there was nothing there anymore except darkness.

-

Alfred had been running down the streets of London (which was near where the Meeting had been held) for almost fifteen minutes nonstop. He slowed down to catch his breath, finally aware of his lungs and throat burning after he initially ignored them and his throbbing wounds for a while.

He wasn't far enough away from the scene, but his hotel was nearby. Both of those insights were dangerous, however. What if those people stormed the hotel? But wait; maybe he could get on the next flight to America? No, no, no. Would the President know what to do? But then, what should _he_ do?

America plopped down on a nearby bench so he could clear his thoughts. During his run it had started to rain, but he didn't notice his clothes were getting completely soaked; he was so immersed in planning out what to do.

"Okay," he whispered to himself, "I should just stay in Europe and call the President later. There's no need to rush back home. The kidnappers might not go too far and they might get a hold of my travel records…"

Next strategy, then.

"Our World Meeting building was kind of isolated. I don't think they'd risk the hotel owners calling the cops on them…"

It seemed logical. At the very least he should go to the hotel for a bit to unpack anything useful for his mission and ring up the President.

Alfred walked for another fifteen minutes toward the direction of the hotel in the rain, but he hugged the sides of the buildings, stayed in crowds, and kept watch for black vans. He successfully made it without being followed.

When he got to his room, America sat down on the bed and sighed. After about two minutes he realized his hair was dripping with rain and his clothes were darkened with water. Also, he was getting blood on his bed and the floor. Huh. He must have looked horrible. No wonder he had been getting stares.

The first thing to do was to shower and change clothes. Because he was still out of it, Alfred took longer than expected and he nearly fell asleep in the tub.

The young nation put on a clean, identical set of the clothes he usually wore. Then, he found Neosporin and a box of band-aids and treated his cuts with them. When he was finished and had gone back to the bedroom area, the doorknob jiggled ominously. Someone walked in before Alfred could hide or figure out what else to do.

"Who the hell are you?" America asked angrily, prepared to fight.

"I'm Canada, your brother!!" Matthew yelled back, equally enraged. "You know, I kind of wish I _had_ been kidnapped." He sighed and closed the door. "No one knew I was there, not even the kidnappers…" he seemed thoroughly disappointed. "I was able to slip by without getting noticed." The visibly tired nation put away his umbrella in the holder nearby. He had remembered earlier that it was rainy in London.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Matthew…" America apologized, flustered. They both sat on the bed. "Well, did you see what else happened after England saved me from those bastards?"

"There was too much of a struggle and I just wanted to get out of there…" Canada recounted, holding Kumajiro closer to him as a comfort while he explained his feelings. "Some of the nations were fighting back but it was too early to tell if any of them would succeed."

"What happened to Arthur?" Alfred asked shakily, his voice sounding slightly scared.

Matthew could sense his distress and said sadly, "About five guys were dragging him away. He was unconscious. There was nothing I could do."

"Damn it," Alfred muttered under his breath. He looked away so as not to show any weaknesses on his face. "Do you know where they were headed?"

"One of them may have mentioned a place, but I just…" Matthew was now on the verge of tears. "I'm just so useless! I'm very, very sorry, America." He stared at the back of the blonde head of hair apprehensively, hoping his brother wasn't displeased with him.

"Don't worry about it; it might come back to you!" Alfred turned and answered him cheerfully, despite the situation and the way he had been before. He even smiled brightly like he used to. It was the side of Alfred that Canada was the most accustomed with, and so he smiled back.

America nearly forgot why he had come back to the hotel. Immediately, he changed his attitude again, and took charge like a hero should. "They might look for us here, so we've got to prepare. Let's see if there's anything we can use in our luggage that will help us on this journey we are about to embark on."

"O – Okay," Canada replied timidly. "I'm not sure I brought anything useful, though."

"It's fine. I'm not sure I did either."

They searched each other's bags, but didn't find much anything of particular use since they hadn't felt any danger when first flying out to Europe to begin with, and anyway, it was impractical to carry big items or many objects with them all the time. America sighed in exasperation as they went down to the lobby so they could find a pay phone somewhere, or, since they were in Britain, a telephone booth or something. The call could still be traced, but at least it'd be less obvious than if they used their cell phones. Hopefully, he'd still be able to get through to the President and make him believe it was him, and about what was happening.

"I wish we at least had some weapons or something. Going out there without any firepower and all by ourselves…I don't feel like a hero anymore. I kind of feel like a fool…" America complained to his brother.

"I'm sure once we call your boss we'll have a better idea of what to do," Canada reassured him. "After all, I'm not sure if the Queen of England even knows we exist, so it'd be hard to get to her or any other country's superior…"

America agreed. "Well, at least we sort of know what to do."

But directly after he uttered those words, there was a loud squealing of tires just outside and a black van was visible through the large glass doors of the hotel lobby.

"Shit!" Alfred cursed, immediately getting in front of Matthew in order to protect him. "They've found us."

--

**A/N:** Wow, thanks for the reviews and subscriptions and such, guys! ^^ I feel much more inspired to write. I also really hope I finish this story because I don't want to disappoint anyone. I usually have a strong beginning and then a weak middle and then I never get to the end because I'm not inspired or just give up because it's crap...

But I promise I'll try to put my best into this! :)

And, if I say something that isn't accurate about Europe or about what any of the countries say, please tell me. I'm unfamiliar with European customs and such. ;__; And also tell me if anyone's out of character.


	3. Chapter 3

Arthur woke up with his hands and feet chained to a stone wall. As he roused himself from drowsiness, he could feel the dried blood spots on the back of his head and at his right elbow. Remembering where he had gotten them from, he groaned irritably.

"Bloody soldiers," England murmured to himself. He tried to get up, but his head hurt too much, and his right arm was almost useless.

The nation lay there for a while, letting his eyes get used to the darkness and attempt to take in his surroundings. A solid, iron door was to his left, and it was just as colorless and dark as the rest of his surroundings. It had small bars set on the top section of it, serving as a window for the guards so they could check on him. As of now, there was no light on the other end of the door, or anywhere else in the room.

England moved his head, trying to ignore the pain it caused him. He could see that the chains didn't extend very far. Even if he wasn't injured, he'd probably just barely be able to stand, which was a disappointment since the prison wasn't too small and it would be nice to at least walk or pace around.

Shock appeared on his features. Where were the others? The cell was definitely big enough for many more people than him. Maybe the leader separated all of them, which, he had to admit, was probably the best route for his captors to take. So exactly how big was the entire prison? Damn, those guys sure planned ahead.

Arthur shifted his skull back to its original position. His body was stiffening up from being immobile for so long, so he stretched his limbs as best he could. He noticed something in a dark corner in the direction of the opposite wall. It was a camera.

He made sure not to curse aloud. Now these idiots were watching his every move? He had to be careful about what he did or said, even though he couldn't actually accomplish much in his position.

Suddenly, in between the bars, shafts of light appeared, and the door creaked open.

-

America was ready to fight with his bare fists if he had to. He abandoned Matthew so he could approach the enemy first. His brother, meanwhile, was telling him to stop and to stay inside the hotel or hide somewhere. But Alfred was out for vengeance, and he didn't care how rash his actions seemed to be. These guys might even have Arthur…!

The tall country was just about to burst through the hotel doors when the van door opened and Russia came out with a bloody metal faucet pipe.

Alfred stood, his mouth agape, as he watched Germany come out of the driver's side, and China and Japan climb out behind the aforementioned psychotic nation.

Matthew's face grew into excitement as he followed Alfred to the entrance of the hotel. "They made it out!" he cheered. "Isn't that great?"

"Yeah," Alfred agreed, his voice barely above a mutter. After a few more seconds, America's open mouth finally turned into a delighted smile as he watched his friends come toward him. He and Matthew took a step back as they all came into the lobby.

"You looked like you were about ready to kill someone, America," Germany commented first, shattering the stunned silence that fell upon them all.

"I've never seen you look so serious before!" Russia chimed in happily.

Alfred explained shyly and with a small blush on his cheeks, "I thought you were the kidnappers and had Arthur. I'm sorry. By the way, how did you guys get out?"

"England did a brave thing," Germany said quietly. "Those guys were mad." America did not look at him.

"We fought back as hard as we could until we were the only nations left not taken…" Japan explained hesitantly. "Russia said he was tired of 'playing games,' and then he beat the guards down and we were freed." He motioned to the bloody tool.

"Afterwards, we hotwired the only van that was left. The goons that had us were supposed to take it to wherever they were supposed to go. The others guys had already left. Talk about comradeship," Germany finished bitterly.

"So the others are…?" America asked worriedly.

"Gone. No one brought weapons and we were overwhelmed by sheer numbers, as you saw, aru. We're the only ones left including you, aru," China said silently. It was the first time he had spoken and he didn't sound too pleased, which made everyone turn to look at him.

"And me," Canada spoke up. But no one heard him, not even Alfred.

"I see. Do we have any other weapons besides…Russia's?" America asked.

"We took the guns those guys had," Japan replied.

"That's great. And now we have a few more people that are ready to fight. Let's all come up with a viable plan, too, okay?" America was tired of thinking and he felt he had already exhausted all possible options in his head. He stopped for a second and looked at all of their faces, one by one. "You guys _are_ ready to fight, right?"

They all nodded their heads, including Matthew, but like always no one saw him standing behind Alfred. It seemed that they all had a reason to help: whether it be out of sheer duty, like Japan and China, or out of love for another, like Germany, because Italy had been kidnapped and he could do nothing about it. Russia's reason was probably to bash some skulls in.

"Aren't you curious about how we found you, aru?" China asked proudly, after another awkward silence had settled over all of them.

"…Sure?" Alfred said.

"I had a laptop with me and found out where you and…um…some other person was staying," Japan answered, blushing because he had hacked into the records in order to find out. After a pause, he asked, "Who is that person, anyway?"

"No clue," Alfred replied. "But wow, I'm happy that we have a very technical person here with us!" He laughed boisterously like he used to. "This is going to be great!"

As the countries continued to talk, Canada took to sitting on a bench. He asked Kumajiro why no one remembered him. The bear simply answered, "Who are you?"

Matthew sighed. "I'm Canada, your owner!"

--

**A/N:** I was debating on putting this chapter up or not. I really hope you like it... ^^ Thanks for all the support, everyone!

Yeah, I decided that a few countries would get out since almost from the beginning. :) Thanks for mentioning it, ArrowSphere! It was a very valid point!

I kind of guessed at which nations should escape from the building, however. I'm sorry if you don't like who I've picked. :( It was very hard for me to decide!


	4. Chapter 4

The nations all slept over in America and Canada's hotel room for lack of a better place to stay since the hotel had no more rooms available. China and Japan both slept on the floor with an extra sheet and pillow. Germany claimed the bathroom, and Russia thought he was sleeping next to America only, so he ended up crushing Canada unknowingly. After Ivan finally fell asleep, Matthew crawled out from under him and put his arms around Alfred, shaking like a leaf. Both brothers stayed up quite a while past the time that the others did.

For America, the reason why wasn't just because of Russia, although he could have sworn he heard him muttering "kolkolkolkol" a few times. Neither one of the brothers wanted to let their guard down lest they become one with Ivan in their sleep. But once it was apparent that Russia wasn't going to get up in the middle of the night, Matthew calmed down enough to sleep. Alfred, however, stayed up nearly the whole night thinking about Arthur.

-

England squinted at the sudden brightness. He shut his eyelids temporarily until the door banged shut again. When he looked back up, he was staring at the leader of the organization who had kidnapped him and his fellows.

"How dare you?" the man asked him. His entire body was covered in black cloth and his face was hidden behind a dark mask. He was unarmed and it didn't look like anybody else was nearby.

Arthur spat back, "How dare I what?" He seemed genuinely confused amidst his rage at being kept in such a disgusting and dirty place.

"I guess my underlings hit you in the head too hard," the man said, his voice amused and playful. He put his own head and body low to the ground, so he was on the same level as Arthur. "Does Alfred F. Jones ring any bells?"

The imprisoned nation immediately reacted: his body jolted, his eyes widened, and his heart beat wildly.

"So you _do_ remember," the evil leader laughed. He stood back up again. "Alfred F. Jones," he repeated. "America."

"How the bloody hell do you know about that?" Arthur inquired furiously. "And where is he?"

On purpose, the man did not answer England's first question, but his tone of voice changed to one of annoyance and anger. "Gone, thanks to you. We may have most of the nations now, but the fact that he escaped pisses me off. He _is_ the top superpower, after all."

"That's why I helped him," England said. "If you wankers got a hold of him, it would be especially bad for the rest of us…" But his face betrayed his most private and hidden thoughts for a moment.

"You're lying," his captor observed, sounding bored. "It's so obvious – you're in love with him and it drives you mad."

"I'm _not_ in love with –" the country began to protest before getting cut off.

"Oh, Arthur Kirkland," the man said, as though he were chiding a child. "Arthur, Arthur, Arthur. Your ex-colony? Really? That's kind of low, isn't it? He's such an idiot, as well. Always eating hamburgers and not caring about anyone else. What do you see in him?"

"Who are you?" England asked. He was shocked that someone could know that much about him and not be a nation.

"My name is Wren. I am no one of importance; as of yet, anyway." The man shrugged. "But before I go, I'm going to tell you what things disgust me and what things piss me off."

Arthur was silent, mulling over what he had said about Alfred earlier.

"What disgusts me is that you nations actually fall in love with each other and never take your job seriously. You're supposed to represent your country honorably. But, well, I suppose you guys still are _human_, after all. When I first found out I was surprised." Wren paused, and Arthur wondered if he was smiling behind the mask. "But it's a good thing most of you _are_ weak. The world will soon belong to me."

"You sound like those bloody villains in those stupid movies America watches," England said, unable to control his chuckling.

"Speaking of Alfred, what pisses me off is that _you_ let him escape," Wren continued. "Therefore, you must be punished."

Arthur immediately grimaced, knowing that he was powerless to stop whatever punishment this man deemed worthy of him receiving.

Wren slammed his boot against Arthur's stomach, knocking the wind out of him and making him bring his knees up to protect his torso. He continued to kick at the helpless country over and over until England was slamming against the wall with the force and his back was hurting. But through all of this, he didn't make a sound, which infuriated his tormentor even more.

"I want you to scream with pain," Wren ordered him. He stopped, panting with the amount of effort it took to harm the other man that much. "Why won't you scream!?"

Arthur looked up at him boldly, his body bruised but his spirit unscathed.

Wren loathed that face. He bent over on his knees and grabbed the blonde-haired man's injured arm. The nation glared at him, but he didn't say anything.

Laughing maniacally, Wren twisted the arm, harder and harder with each passing moment, so that after a few seconds Arthur cried out in anguish. The sound of his voice echoed in the cell, reverberated outside the room, and rung out into other ones near it.

England finally had his arm released, relieving him of some pain. Wren was still laughing when he exited the cell and asked him tauntingly, "Where's your hero now?"

Arthur uncurled himself from the protective ball he had been in and laid on the floor like he had before. "Alfred," he whispered through gritted teeth, "You better be getting your ass over here right now."

-

America exclaimed, "You know, these European hamburgers are pretty good in their own way!" He munched on one, completely content. That morning, they had all piled into the van, which had plenty of room for all of them, in order to decide on what to do and start thinking of a plan. Alfred had forced the countries to stop at a McDonald's close by.

As he ate with a practically invisible Canada next to him, Japan and China checked out the technology inside the stolen vehicle, and Germany and Russia sat in the back watching.

"It has GPS," Japan reported in a slight monotone. "In fact, all of this hardware is pretty nice. It's very advanced."

"Maybe there are some coordinates to their base in it," Germany said. "Could you find that out, Kiku?"

"I'll try," the nation replied.

Meanwhile, Matthew was yelling at his brother to stop eating and start helping the others. But this had limited success because he didn't seem to notice him.

Finally, America said, "Would you like a hamburger too, Mattie?" Apparently, he _did_ know he was there (which surprised even Canada), but he had chosen to ignore him. It wasn't like he never did this to anyone else, however, this was the straw that broke the camel's back. Matthew had been getting increasingly mad at the bigger country the whole trip.

"America, do you even care about what England might be going through right now!?" He burst out angrily and so loudly that even the other nations had heard him. They all wondered when Canada had gotten there.

Alfred put down his half-eaten burger. He looked serious again. "Mattie, of course I care," he told him. "It's just nice to take a break from everything once in a while and relax. That's why I eat so much." He smiled over at him warmly. "It takes a load off my mind."

Before a suddenly flustered Canada could reply, a voice came out of the van that didn't belong to any of the countries inside of it.

"Vehicle #4?" It seemed to be coming from a sort of voice receiver in the dashboard. "Vehicle #4? Come in. What is your status?"

Everyone was speechless, unsure of how to respond. America got up, briskly walked toward the van, and almost started shouting at it to tell him where Arthur was. Luckily, Matthew grabbed him, and Japan made a low "shh," noise that wasn't picked up by whoever was on the other end. Then, he mouthed to Alfred that he had an idea.

"Um, yes, this is Vehicle #4," he started. After a pause, he continued, "We were eluded by our original targets, but we have captured America."

Alfred's eyes widened with eagerness and understanding.

"Good. Actually, that's great. Perfect, even. Bring him in as soon as you can." Unbeknownst to them, Wren was the one speaking. He had to stop himself from snickering in excitement at this great piece of news.

"We have…lost the coordinates," Japan said. "Could you send us instructions on where to go?"

The leader sighed and replied, "Yes, fine. Here you go." A screen popped up on the GPS and the directions to the base appeared.

"Thank you," Japan answered. "We shall arrive shortly." A click on the other side signaled that the conversation was officially over.

"Alright, Kiku!" Alfred cheered. "You're awesome!"

"It's a dangerous plan…" Germany thought aloud. "How will we slip through? We don't have their uniforms, do we? And how will America free everyone and get out? He'll probably get locked up or something as soon as we get him in."

"It's simple, aru!" China broke in. "I have their uniforms and masks. I took it off of them earlier just in case we needed them. Always think ahead, aru yo! They're in the back of the van."

"And when we get in, we can pretend to be the guards," Russia offered cheerfully. "We'll make sure America is safe and we can also free the others at the same time, da!"

"What do you think, Germany?" Alfred asked expectantly.

"Well, they're good ideas, but it's still a very risky plan…"

"Don't worry! Danger's a part of any good mission!" America exclaimed, his boundless optimism returning to him. "And the heroes always win!"

--

**A/N:** I'm glad you guys liked who I chose to accompany the North America brothers on their journey. ^^ And I'm so happy that people seem to really like this story!

Wren is a character I've made specifically for this story...Though his name is slightly based off another character of mine in one of my original stories. But I think I made him a bit too sadistic. Hahaha. Poor Arthur. And poor Alfred, having to sleep next to Ivan. I'd be scared. I hope Arthur never finds out about that! xD

But I bet Alfred sleeps boxers that have the U.S. flag printed all over them~!


	5. Chapter 5

The door clicked open again. Arthur looked up with slight bags under his eyes from no sleep the night before, and his whole body was aching from lying in the same position on the hard, stone floor ever since he had been captured.

"How are you feeling, England?" Wren asked, stepping inside the cell casually with his usual outfit on.

Arthur simply said, "Why are you here again?"

"Isn't it obvious? I wanted to see you," the man answered in a mocking tone.

"Cut the crap, Wren," the island nation hissed between clenched teeth. "What is it that you wanted to see me for?"

"You're no fun. But fine, I'll tell you. Alfred's been captured, and he's being transported here as we speak. Your pathetic attempt to save him was for nothing." Wren cackled as the nation at his feet writhed in anger.

"Son of a –"

"Language, Arthur."

"Release me from these chains; let's fight man-to-man! I'll beat you to a bloody pulp," England threatened.

"Maybe you could, but do you really think I'd do such a thing? I don't care for honor or pride, only power. Now that I have America, I'm all set. Your job now is to lie here until you rot." Another click, and Wren was gone.

-

The countries took turns getting ready by having one of them at a time in the back of the van get dressed and pick a gun while the others stood outside. They were having their sanity tested by Alfred, who was waving seemingly endless supplies of hamburgers in front of their faces and asking them if they wanted one every few seconds.

"Why don't we try to make this whole thing look a little more authentic, America?" Russia asked after he nearly snapped out of annoyance. He raised his pipe, which seemingly came out of nowhere. "I can hit you over the head with this and then maybe they'll be more likely to believe that we caught you forcibly, da?"

"N-No, that's fine, Ivan! R-Really!" Alfred ran inside the McDonald's and didn't mention hamburgers again.

When everyone was ready (except Canada; he could slip by unnoticed the way he was), they waved America over, tied him up, and sat him in the back of the van. As Germany drove, they passed the time by telling each other what they were supposed to remember to do when they got there.

"Alfred-san, it'd be nice if you don't smile like that when we're getting there. They could become suspicious," Japan said. "Try to look more serious and like you regret getting captured – which I'm sure you would be if this were real."

"Of course, Kiku!" America reassured him. "I'm a great actor, you know! Hollywood isn't in my country for nothing," he bragged. "But China and Russia have to remember not to use 'aru' and 'da' at the end of their sentences. It would be a total giveaway!"

"That's true," Germany agreed. He periodically looked at the GPS and then back at the road to make sure he was going the right way.

"I suppose we are all in agreement, then," Japan said. "Alfred-san acts as though he really is getting captured and Yao-san and Ivan-san speak normally."

Both of the countries knew that it was such a big part of how they communicated that they might ruin the whole plan if they didn't change it. So, they both resolved inwardly to speak as little as possible during the mission.

America was bouncing up and down on the floor of the van, with Canada was sitting silently next to him. Alfred told him that he could be used as espionage and such since he wasn't going to be noticed by anyone (not even his own teammates, for the most part). Oh, how the American wished he could be a cool spy like that! But being a hero was much better than being a spy, he reasoned, so it was a good compromise.

"Alfred, will you stop?" Matthew cut into his thoughts suddenly. He sounded irritated again. "Why are you so happy? What if something bad happens to you?"

"I'm the hero, so nothing bad will happen to me –"

The other country cut him off. "It's not that I don't believe you, Alfred, but that isn't very reassuring in the least. This is real life, not a movie."

"But Mattie, I'm not pretending to be a hero: I _am_ one," America said, full of pride. "You have to trust me." He stared at him with such solid, sea-blue eyes that it looked as though they could conquer anything they set their sights on.

Canada looked away and sighed. He was still scared, but not as much as he was before. Maybe Alfred really could look after himself, no matter how incapable he seemed to be at first.

America hummed cheerfully, "So, are we almost there, Ludwig?"

"Yes, but these directions are strange," the nation remarked. "We're driving into the countryside, and we're close, but there seems to be nothing of importance here. Did he give us the wrong instructions?"

As soon as he said this, however, the top part of a strange-looking building was rising up on the horizon. When they got closer, they realized that it was a castle, and if they didn't know that it was the supposed to be the organization's base, they would have thought it was one of the sites of old castles left in England.

When they got inside the grounds, a couple of guards that recognized the van came out and the nations breathed an inward sigh of relief. They now knew that they hadn't shown up at the wrong place. America steadied himself and put on a very serious face; he dared to venture it was his most solemn yet.

One of the guards came up to the driver's side of the van, and the other one stayed back, inspecting it from afar.

Germany cleared his throat. "This is Vehicle #4," he declared.

"You're the one with America?" the guard asked him cautiously.

"Yeah." Ludwig jerked his head toward the back, where America was sitting. "That's him, isn't it?"

The guard pulled a crumpled up piece of paper from his pocket, upon which a picture of the American was printed, and compared the two. "Fine," he said, putting it back in his uniform. "You can go inside."

Everyone was quite surprised that he had that picture – did all of the organization's members have one? They didn't let the shock show in their movements, for they were all perfectly still.

Germany hesitantly drove toward the door of the castle, which was opened shortly in order to let them pass. The first room inside was an indoor parking lot for the black vans. Once Ludwig secured the van in the only empty spot left, he and the others filed out accordingly. Japan roughly grabbed America and had his gun pointing into his back, while the others circled around them and started to go for the nearest door in the interior of the castle.

"I apologize for this, Alfred-san," he murmured.

"It's fine," America whispered back, smiling at him for a second before looking serious again.

On the other side of the nearest door was the foyer, which had long walls dotted with doors on the left and right. Giant, twin staircases led to the upper floors. The countries were confused as to where to go. However, as if on cue, a man came down the long, winding stairs slowly, a mischievous grin plastered on his face.

He had long, black hair, and was wearing a sweeping black cloak, as well. His eyes were clear grey, almost a shining silver color. He was surprisingly thin and a little frail-looking; his clothes, different from the usual organization's uniform, were hanging off of his outstretched arms. He was carrying a glass with an unknown liquid in it in one hand, and brushed his other one against the polished railing as he walked.

No one was sure who this person was, and for fear of betraying their plan, they didn't say anything.

"Do you not recognize me? Well, I suppose you wouldn't. Most of my subordinates do not get to see my face up close. I am Wren, the leader of the Black Roses."

Once again, no one moved, unsure of how to greet him.

Wren sighed and rolled his eyes. These fools couldn't recognize greatness up close? "I thank you for capturing America. You've proved yourselves quite competent, and I think I may promote each one of you, so you may work closely with me in my new world government." He moved closer to the group, his eyes rolling over each one of their features. He continued to smile, but it was a bit more gracious. Finally, he came up next to Japan and slipped his slender fingers under one of the ropes that was bounding Alfred's arms. The incarcerated country was silent, continuing his façade of pretending to be grim and keeping proud of his resistance at the same time.

"Ah, Wren-sa – I mean, Wren…" Japan started. "Where are you taking him?"

"I was going to escort him to the dungeon," the leader said nonchalantly. "Would you like to do the honors instead?"

"If you do not mind," Kiku replied, bowing slightly. He straightened up almost immediately because he wasn't sure if it was the correct behavior to display or not.

Wren kept smiling at him. "Sure, go ahead. I'll show the others to their rooms. I'm sure you all must be so tired from chasing and subduing Alfred. You were gone for a whole day, after all."

"Yes, we are," Germany said suddenly. "Let's go."

The leader pointed out the door in the foyer that led to the dungeons and then motioned for everyone else to follow him upstairs.

Japan and America walked to the door, and after hurrying down the first flight of stairs, Kiku undid Alfred's ropes and let him free. "Look, Alfred-san," the Asian nation said, pointing down at the rows of cell doors. They each had a certain country's flag on the right side of the prison entrances, presumably with the respectable nation inside.

"I'm going to find the UK's flag," America decided aloud quickly. Blushing slightly at the almost uncomprehending stare that Japan gave him, he explained himself hurriedly, "I have to make sure that Arthur's okay."

"But maybe we should get to work freeing the others first or something –" Kiku protested. He was also a little suspicious because there were no prison guards in sight.

"Just give me a sec," America interrupted, already dashing down the hall. He was so far away that he didn't hear his friend's reply. As he ran, he couldn't see the particular flag he was searching for on that floor, but there was another flight of stairs at the end of the hall. The pattern repeated itself until he reached the end of the fourth and final hallway. Alfred almost thought he wasn't going to find it, and at the second-to-last door, there was a U.S. flag. He shuddered as he passed it, but when he finally laid eyes on the spot next to the last door, there it was. The United Kingdom.

"Arthur!" the young nation yelled as he threw the door open hastily. "Arthur, I'm here!"

England was unresponsive. His eyes were closed and he did not stir, not even when Alfred knelt by his side and shook him. Was he already gone? America didn't want that to be true; nations couldn't die that easily, could they? Tears started to prick at his eyes as he contemplated that perhaps he was too late to save him. Did the hero…actually lose in this story?

After a few moments, Arthur slowly returned to consciousness, murmuring slowly, "Alfred…? Is that you?"

"Oh, Arthur, you're alright! The hero wins again!" America beamed his idiotic, happy smile along with small, wet drops of salty water dotting the corners of his eyes. "I was so worried."

"You act as though I never worried about you, you bloody git," England huffed, acting like his usual self now that he was around his ex-colony again.

"Don't ever change, Arthur," Alfred laughed. "Now, I have to find a way to get you out of these chains –"

A gun fired four consecutive bullets into the nation's chest at that instant.

"I can't believe you didn't think I would catch on to your plan, America. You're even stupider than I first thought," Wren laughed hysterically.

Alfred's body slumped over Arthur's, his eyes glassy and his famous grin gone.

--

**A/N**: It _might_ take me a while to update again because, ironically, I suppose, I have a lot of AP US History homework to do in this next week or so. I'm sorry! ;_; I do enjoy learning more about Alfred, though.

I know I'm not a very good writer, but my passion lies in Creative Writing, and I just wanted to ask if anyone knew any good universities in England where I could study abroad (in Creative Writing, of course). I'm wondering if it'd benefit me more to study there or to just stay in the US and study... I'm 16 so I still have time to make that decision. :)

Thank you everyone for reviewing, favoriting, and following this story. I'm kind of embarrassed because I'm not that good. I hope that you will continue to enjoy it.


	6. Chapter 6

"Alfred!? ALFRED!!!" Arthur yelled, gripping his friend's body and holding it closer to him. His elbow screamed with pain, but he ignored it. "Get up! You can't be dead…"

"Of course he isn't. Bullets don't kill nations," Wren said. That smirk was practically stuck to his face. "Those were specifically designed to paralyze." He walked toward the pair, the strange liquid still swirling in the glass he was carrying in his unarmed hand.

"You stay away from him," England warned; a determined fire in his green eyes.

"And what will _you_ do about that?" The Black Rose leader scoffed. He quickly shot him once in the stomach. This froze him in place, but he was still conscious and could talk.

"Stop!" Arthur continued to shout as he inched closer to America. "Stop right there!"

Wren paid him no heed and knelt next to Alfred. He put his gun away in the waistband of his pants, and then started to explain how he found out about America's plan. "You see, first, I knew something was fishy when the vehicle didn't return within the time they all usually did. Also, a few other nations were missing. Besides, our GPS told us that exactly where the van went. After checking the hotel records, we found out that the missing countries just regrouped with Alfred and met at a hamburger restaurant before coming here, as well. It was so easy to find out." He looked up thoughtfully. "Just now, I shot Japan and the guards have him right now. The others, well, I just tricked them into going into one room and they're all stuck in one huge cage now. I have a bunch of guards watching them, but they all seem to be afraid of this one fellow with a pipe. Well, it's no big deal. It should hold them all."

England couldn't blame them for making those sorts of mistakes; after all, he probably would have made the same ones if he had been with them.

Wren bent down and parted Alfred's lips slightly. With precision and care, the man tilted his cup over, and the liquid inside of it was poured steadily down into America's throat.

"Is that a drug?" Arthur asked, as Wren pushed the unconscious country's head up so he would be sure that it all went down.

"You could call it that, yes," he replied. "This will force him to do my bidding."

Arthur glared at him. "He'll never do your bidding, no matter what you give him."

"Oh, if you say so, Arthur," Wren said mockingly. "I'm sure you're right, like always."

England could almost feel his blood boiling. "You twat. You think you know everything, but you're not going to get away with this."

Wren wasn't paying attention to him. He started to monologue yet again, but this time it was about his evil plan. "My plan is to have America use his nukes and bomb major cities. He'll be my little pet as I rule the world and then I'll dispose of him once I'm finished with him. I'll start a revolution of the whole _world_! Then, all the countries will be weakened enough to be killed off, execution-style." He watched for a change in Alfred's eyes and then smiled. Putting a finger to his lips, he murmured something into America's ear. Just as he finished, the nation snapped back to an upright sitting position.

Suddenly, Alfred wrapped his arms around Wren and laid his head against his chest. Arthur could see his face and it was without emotion; furthermore his eyes were still glassy. It was as though he was a moving corpse.

"Oh, Alfred. You're so cute." The leader smiled cheerfully. "You love me, don't you?"

"Yeah." His voice was hollow and meaningless.

"This man, you know; the one in the chains? He's so horrible to me. I had to lock him up because he tried to kill me! Won't you punish him?"

Alfred's eyebrows furrowed in anger at Arthur. "You hurt Wren?" he asked, letting go of the conniving man and advancing upon his former friend. "You'll pay for that."

"America, stop it!" You're under a drug. You remember me, don't you!? I'm England!" the shorter country shrieked at him as he came nearer and nearer with murderous intent in his eyes.

"England?" Alfred looked confused for a moment when he heard the nation's name. He stopped walking.

"Does the Revolutionary War ring any bells?" Arthur said anything that came to mind. "Let's see, you've hated tea since the Boston Tea Party. You love coffee and hamburgers and fast food. You wanted to call me big brother since I found you and you chose me over the frog, France." His face softened at all the memories, even the bad ones. "But I told you to call me England, instead. Then, you gave me a ridiculous nickname –"

"I…Iggy?" America spluttered, his voice almost back to normal and some light returning to his eyes. "Iggy, I'm so sorry! Please help me –"

"_Both of you just shut up!_" Wren shouted, pulling out his gun and shooting both of them. Alfred fell unconscious again because of his previous injuries, but Arthur gritted his teeth as pain raced through his body once more.

The Black Rose leader then pulled out a sort of communication device and called the guards in to move Alfred to his room. England wanted to laugh at him because he knew that he was too weak to move him himself. And he was just such a stereotypical American villain; it was as though he had walked out of one of Alfred's silly comic books.

"I'll get you, Arthur," Wren swore after the guards carried America away. He followed them and the door shut behind him once more.

--

**A/N:** I'm really sorry it took this long to update...x_X I actually got writer's block along the way. This chapter is pretty short and crappy, so I'm sorry about that, too. I'll try to update more often, as long as the writer's block isn't too severe. And thanks to all of you for the college information. ^_^ It was really helpful!


	7. Chapter 7

Arthur lay hopeless on the cold floor, completely immobile. His friend had been taken away a couple of hours earlier, and just a little while ago he had an outburst that had gotten him nowhere. It had merely made his wrists and ankles even sorer as the metal grinded against his skin while he attempted to break the chains or slip out of them. However, he had failed and his groans only got the new guards outside his door angry.

His elbow hurt even more, and he lamented the fact that he could do absolutely nothing to save America. What a perfect damsel in distress he was. Now the hero was captured, and unless he thought of something, the world would be in turmoil very soon.

England knew that tears weren't going to help, but the situation was just so discouraging, especially since the others couldn't even escape Wren's grasp. Just as the water was starting to leave the corners of his eyes, the country heard something. It was the flapping of individual pairs of frail wings, and voices that didn't belong to the guards. He craned his neck to see if he could find whatever was making those noises. They seemed so familiar, but he didn't think he'd ever hear their sounds again since he had been kidnapped.

His first suspicions were correct, as two fairies poked their heads out from between the bars of the door.

"Arthur! We were looking for you!" one of them squeaked. She was pink, and the other one was yellow. "We looked all over the countryside for days." She gasped as she saw the condition her friend was in. "Oh, no! Are you alright?"

England's eyes finally had a glimmer of hope in them as he watched his fairy friends fly closer to him. "Can you help me out of these? Or at least help me do _something_! This is really serious."

"Maybe we should heal him first," the yellow one cut in. "And get the other creatures to help too! I think if we can get the wizard to come over, he could make these chains disappear right away with a magic spell! And then maybe the unicorn could carry you…"

"That'd be lovely," Arthur heaved a deep, relaxed breath. "After this, I hope Alfred never makes fun of you guys again."

-

America woke up slowly to Wren's face hovering right above his body. He yelled in shock as soon as he was able and tried to get away, but realized that he was in chains, and so he couldn't get far. He went up against the wall he was chained to, which was the farthest he could get away from the leader, and, looking around, he noticed that he was in a room identical to Arthur's. It was probably the one with the U.S. flag outside of it.

"You're so rambunctious, Alfred!" Wren exclaimed, in his seemingly always mocking voice. He reached out with his arms and attempted to cup America's chin in his hands. The nation swatted his hands away viciously, the metal smacking against his wrists and also hurting Wren's fingers.

The human shrank back, almost hissing as he did so. He rubbed the little joints that were hurt and glared at Alfred.

"I was wrong; you're much weaker than you look," America commented venomously.

"You won't be gloating for long." Wren went through another monologue explaining his plan to the country. He really seemed to like doing this, especially since his silvery eyes lit up and glinted whenever he did.

Once he had finished, Alfred was silent for a few moments. Finally, he burst out laughing. "What an idiotic plan. It'll never work. Besides, what's your beef with me? Russia has the most nuclear weapons, doesn't he?"

"It _will_ work!" Wren huffed. "And he may have the most weapons, but he'd probably be one of the hardest countries to force to do my bidding. Besides, I have a score to settle with you."

"What did I ever do to you?" America knew that he had made plenty of rash decisions in the past, but this person wasn't a country, so what was his personal problem with him?

"You don't even remember me!?" Wren shouted angrily. "I can't believe you!!"

"You're just a human!" America yelled back.

"No, I'm not. Well, now I am, thanks to you," the Black Rose Leader sighed.

"Wait. So are you the Confederacy or something? I thought we joined together again –" Alfred was completely clueless.

"I'm not the fucking Confederacy!!" Wren cried out. "You know what? I'm going to let you sit here and think about who I am. I'm going to come back after a while and see if you've remembered. Think real hard, Alfred. I'm sure _that's_ a challenge for you." He stormed out.

America tried to think back throughout his history, but no event stuck out. What was he talking about, and what was he supposed to be? How could he be grown up if he wasn't a flourishing country? No, that's right, Alfred remembered, he _wasn't_ a country. Not anymore, according to him. The strangest question of the bunch soon made his way to the front of his mind: how had he become completely human?

-

Canada slowly walked about the dungeon where the others countries were kept. He had heard Wren muttering something about how he was missing a country but couldn't place which one it was a little while ago when he left a room and went back upstairs. Matthew went over to that room and saw the U.S. flag beside it. Smiling, he looked through the bars and saw Alfred, deep in thought, but stuck in chains.

Since the guards couldn't see him, he was able to get into the cell without anyone noticing, unfortunately not even America.

"Alfred! I'm so glad that you're okay!"

"W…Who the hell are you?"

"_I'm Canada_!! If you can't remember me, then I won't help you get out," the forgettable nation huffed.

"Oh, Mattie! I'm so happy you came," Alfred replied, smiling in a way that made Canada forgive him immediately (no one could resist it). "How did you get here?"

"I was really suspicious of Wren, so I stayed behind everyone. It's not like they even knew I was there, but…I saw the others get locked up in a cage when they entered a room!"

"That's terrible," America commented. After thinking for a bit longer, he said, grinning, "We've got to save them! You're very helpful with your invisibility, you know, Mattie."

Canada beamed back at his brother. "Yeah, I guess. Now, let's get you free."

--

**A/N:** I've had such a happy day today since it's my birthday! ^_^ Yay! I also decided to finish this chapter but I think it's really bad, haha. Sorry. :( I couldn't wait to put it up.

I was thinking about what to make Wren (since he knows all their secrets and stuff) and I had an idea. I won't spill it here but I hope it ends up making sense. I don't have much creativity left for this story but I really want to finish it so I don't disappoint those who are following it. :)


	8. Chapter 8

Wren slipped into bed and snuggled into the sheets comfortably. He looked out of the window and saw that it was already late at night, and he should have been sleeping a while ago. But he couldn't help it, because he had finally captured America and the next day he'd be able to begin his "take-over-the-world" plan. This was practically the first time anything went his way since his untimely birth.

The evil former "country" stood up and closed the blinds because watching the outdoors was starting to bother him. He had promised himself that he would never leave the castle until he ruled the ground he walked on. As he walked back to his bed, he was keenly aware of how feeble he was: the marks were still there from when America had hit him, and he was walking slowly like an old man.

Wren was used to being alone. It felt like he had always been, and so it was very natural for him. The man stared up at the ceiling and his silvery eyes began to flutter downwards in sleep. Like he usually did, he thought and partially dreamed of the past: his birth and the events after it.

-

It was during the winter of 1805-1806. A boy suddenly first appeared from under a table where an important American figure and a friend of his were talking about their plans – their plans for the boy's future, although he didn't know it at first. Timidly, he walked out from under the table after eavesdropping for a few minutes, and looked around the room with the wide, innocent eyes of a toddler. It was cold. He shivered and crossed his arms over his little white dress.

"Who let this child in here?" the child heard the main conspirator ask. Immediately, his gaze shifted to him, and he stared and stared into his eyes.

"I made sure no one came in this room. I don't know how he showed up here…" his friend answered.

"Well, we'd better let him out and bring him back to his mother. Say, little boy, where are your parents?" The man bent down to his height and returned his gaze.

"I don't have any," the child replied sadly. "But I think that…you might be my father."

"What are you talking about? You are definitely not any child of mine," the man said. He seemed even more confused. "Now please tell us the truth."

"It is the truth! You were talking about making your own country just now, weren't you?"

"You heard?" the man looked worried now. "Please don't tell anyone. We'll return you to your mother and father as soon as possible if you don't…"

"If you were, then that means that you created me," the boy said, seemingly wiser beyond his years in just a few seconds. "I am the country that you are hoping to make." The kid titled his head slightly and murmured, "Aaron Burr is your name, right?"

"What?" the man gasped in surprise when he heard his name being uttered by this child who had no idea where he even was just a little while ago. There was something weird, even creepy about this child, who literally seemed to have appeared out of thin air under the desk, because every door had been secured beforehand. Now he was telling _him_ that he was the personification of his dream…?

It took a while for Aaron Burr to be fully convinced about what this strange phenomenon was, but once he accepted it, he continued talking about his plans with his friend while the child was within hearing range. By now the kid was wandering about the room happily and carelessly, and they had nothing to fear from him at the very least.

Since then, Aaron Burr carried the child around with him as though he were his own. But at the same time he wanted to keep him a secret because he was afraid someone would find out who he really was, and therefore about his intentions. The little boy was born out of his dreams and hopes; Burr was determined to make him a country soon, and promised it to him often. Sometimes, the child wondered if he was a burden, a mistake. He couldn't just abandon the small kid now, but if he was caught, the punishment for treason was usually death.

Burr didn't have a country name for him, but because whenever he was away the child played in the nearby woods where these cute birds called "winter wrens" (or just wrens in England) lived, he started to call him simply Wren. Wrens were more common in the New World, and were very small (one of the tiniest). They were secretive, but their songs were very loud and complex. Wren still remembered the images of those birds he played with, so small and timid and whose habits were just like his. Wren had to be a secret, like them, but he was determined to finally find a time where he could sing loudly like they did.

Wren was "born" in Washington, D.C., and so he stayed there even when Burr was gone doing work or whatever else he did. He always happiest whenever his "father" came to visit him.

He didn't know when it happened or when, because he was still a child and didn't understand many things, but one day he overheard people talking about Aaron Burr and how he had been arrested and was now being tried for treason. Worried, Wren immediately set off to look for him. He heard he was being tried in Richmond, Virginia. It had been a long walk, but Wren was determined and made it after days and nights of nonstop travel. He didn't need to eat and he didn't want to stop because he wanted to be there for him.

Eventually, Wren was able to enter the court house and peer in from the observing crowd to see what was happening. He didn't understand anything, but he was still scared.

That was when he saw him. A teenaged boy with blonde hair and blue eyes was watching from the front of the crowd. His eyes shifted slightly to his sides at times, as though he weren't supposed to be there.

However, after a while his gaze caught the little boy who was battling his way through the crowd of people, and his eyes widened in surprise. Wren did not notice this look of recognition that he had, but this young man had seen him before, in D.C., near the place where he liked to take his walks and where the small birds tried to hide. Alfred had always wondered who he had belonged to, and looking now at his dirty, white dress and watering eyes it was obvious.

The United States of America walked out of the court room after that and said nothing to anyone about the boy, lest he was taken in or his identity was exposed (therefore America's as a nation, as well). The best option was to just leave him be. The boy watched him leave, seemingly knowing inwardly who he was. However, he didn't call him out or follow him. He merely turned back to the court proceedings because, in his young mind, it was more important.

After the trial, Burr was determined to forget about everything. He had been acquitted by the Supreme Court, but now he wanted to go to England and take Wren with him. Wren did not like the long ship ride there, but he was sure he could survive anything as long as his father was there with him.

They went visiting the countryside and saw an abandoned castle in the distance when Wren realized that his own body was dying, because he was getting weaker and weaker and could now barely walk without assistance. He remembered burning up with a strange fever and breathing heavily. He remembered being laid against a makeshift bed in the castle and Burr saying something over him, probably praying.

Wren could only remember a few of those words now because he had been sick and it was a long time ago: "Please…my final wish…Wren…human…"

After that, Wren was asleep for a long time. Aaron Burr seemed to know that he may wake up one day, but after waiting for a few years in self-imposed exile in Europe, he wanted to return to the United States and continue practicing law. He felt horrible, but he had to abandon poor Wren, leaving a note in his hand for when he would finally awaken. Burr became a recluse in New York City until his death.

Many, many years later, Wren woke up, but now he had the body of a teenager and it seemed he was no longer a potential nation. He had awakened exactly two hundred years later, but within a few years he learned everything about what was recently happening in the world and was able to plot what he wanted to do. In the yellowing note, Burr had left him some of his money, although he didn't have too much of it left at the time of his death. However, Wren was able to use some of it to put his plans into motion. He needed to work fast because now that he was human, he was starting to age.

Wren knew that there were other nations by instinct since he had started to become one himself. It took him a good portion of his time, but he was able to eventually find America and the place where they held their meetings (using spies of course because he had vowed never to leave the castle until he ruled everything). It was, to him, the only way to get revenge for his father. That was also why capturing America was so important to him, and why he seemed to hate England, which was because he had been left there for so long.

Now, his revenge was going to be complete very soon. The mere thought of that made Wren excited, but also extremely nervous. Would this be what his father wanted to see if he could be here now?

--

**A/N:** I had a sudden spurt of creativity and decided to finally finish this chapter (in a couple of hours 0_0!). I guess I should elaborate on it here a little bit on the history this is based on.

Aaron Burr was tried in 1807 for conspiring to start his own nation (I randomly remembered this because my teacher made a joke about that when we were talking about him near the beginning of the year I think, so I just decided to use that idea). I think they were really just rumors but I'm not sure if it was actually true. I think he did have land down in the south or something and planned to invade another part of the US or something...Gosh, I know my history skills suck but I don't want to say anything that isn't definite here. I really hope this makes sense...Wren wasn't ever a nation but Burr had land somwhere so...? -shot-

Anyway, I really hope you liked this chapter and that it isn't too random. And the Wren-bird thing was cute. I just made that name up and it really ended up fitting him! I guess I'm just lucky sometimes, lol. Thanks for supporting this story and I'm sorry for not updating sooner. ;-; I was busy with APUSH and school stuff and some video games (...and I also cosplayed with a friend! 3 It was for Death Note and I was Light Yagami, and she was Misa. xD We had a random photoshoot and it was fun.) If I ever cosplay again I **REALLY** want to be America but I need to get his hair and clothes...Also, when I get a new pair of glasses I want them to look just like his. xD Problem is I haven't found anyone to be England...TT_TT

I still love Hetalia but I was staying away from it for just a bit. I'm surprised I haven't moved on to anything else seriously by now since I'm very sporadic with obssessions. Well, at least I'm still here and I'm going to try to finish this story when I can. I also have a few more ideas for other stories (all USxUK pretty much, lol) but I'm not sure if I should start any of them (I'll put the ideas up on my profile later I guess). I'm really nervous about them and I'm not sure if I'd be able to finish them...And I also hope I stay in the Hetalia fandom for much longer. Yeah, sorry this A/N is really long! It's late and I also apologize if there are grammar mistakes anywhere! I gotta go sleep! x_x ...oh yes, thank you all for the happy birthdays (even though it was a over a month ago as I write this)! And I truly apologize for this long A/N....I ramble a lot...=__= Please forgive me. ;-;


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